Fantasy Books by Black Authors

In the sequel to the “unforgettable” (People), New York Times bestselling fantasy debut Blood at the Root, a Black teenager with magical powers returns to Caiman University only to find new dangers and new secrets.

Featuring Najeeba, now older and wiser than readers have ever known her, this is a tale of family, courage, and healing. The Daughter Who Remains is the final book in the She Who Knows trilogy. This tale isn’t about Najeeba learning to master her powerful skills, it’s about her having the audacity and courage to use them and use them well … no matter the consequence.

Two dead princesses must find true love’s kiss to be brought back to life in this heart-stopping romantic fantasy debut. On their journey, the princesses must overcome challenges that force them to face the truth of their lives … and their deaths. And as the girls grow closer, they can’t help but wonder if true love has been standing right in front of them all along.

In the first book of a new series inspired by African mythology, dragon gods rule the earth and sky — until the gods are betrayed, and one girl embarks on a journey to save the world from war and ruin. From the New York Times bestselling author of Skin of the Sea.

A reclusive witch who fled the burden of her bloodline rises to be the greatest among them in this lush and haunting fantasy debut.

A dark contemporary fantasy featuring witchcraft, tarot, death, and a bit of romance that’s perfect for fans of Immortal Dark and Cinderella Is Dead. Death Card is a dark, pacy, and romantasy about one witch’s journey to find the strength to fight for herself, her future, and her beloved community.

In this Southern gothic horror debut, a young Black woman abandons her life in 1960s Chicago for a position with a mysterious family in New Orleans, only to discover the dark truth: They’re under a curse, and they think she can break it.

When Apollo Kagwa’s father disappeared, he left his son a box of books and strange recurring dreams. Now Apollo is a father himself — and as he and his wife, Emma, settle into their new lives as parents, exhaustion and anxiety start to take their toll. Apollo’s old dreams return and Emma begins acting odd. But before Apollo can do anything to help, Emma commits a horrific act and vanishes. Thus begins Apollo’s quest to find a wife and child who are nothing like he’d imagined. His odyssey takes him to a forgotten island, a graveyard full of secrets, a forest where immigrant legends still live, and finally back to a place he thought he had lost forever.

In the stunning first novel in Marlon James’s Dark Star trilogy, myth, fantasy, and history come together to explore what happens when a mercenary is hired to find a missing child.

The must-read Black mermaid fantasy series that #1 New York Times bestselling author Nicola Yoon calls “epic and original,” in which one mermaid takes on the gods themselves.

A modern-day YA romantic fantasy series opener about a glamorous magical world of social elites, forbidden love, and a dark magic that could destroy it all. Brimming with ballgowns and betrayal, magic and mystery, decadence and darkness, House of Marionne is perfect for readers who crave morally gray characters, irresistible romance, dark academia, and a deeply intoxicating and original world.

In the first book of the visionary Ending Fire trilogy with its roots in the mythology of Africa and Arabia that “sings of rebellion, love, and the courage it takes to stand up to tyranny” (Samantha Shannon, author of The Priory of the Orange Tree), three women band together against a cruel empire that divides people by blood.

From the National Book Award-winning author of Between the World and Me, a boldly conjured debut novel about a magical gift, a devastating loss, and an underground war for freedom. The Water Dancer is a propulsive, transcendent work that restores the humanity to those from whom everything was stolen.

In this blockbuster fantasy series, perfect for fans of Firekeeper’s Daughter and Iron Widow, fate binds two Black teenagers together as they journey into a magical jungle to hunt down a vicious monster. But it quickly becomes unclear whether they are the hunters or the hunted …

A genre-defying novel from the award-winning author NPR describes as “like [Madeline] L’Engle … glorious.” A singular book that explores themes of identity and justice. Pet is here to hunt a monster. Are you brave enough to look?

A young Black girl goes missing in the woods outside her white rust belt town. But she’s not the first — and she may not be the last … It’s watching. It’s taking. It’s your turn.

The year is 2172. Climate change and nuclear disasters have rendered much of earth unlivable. Only the lucky ones have escaped to space colonies in the sky. Across Nigeria, as the years-long civil war wages on, survival becomes the only way of life. Two sisters, Onyii and Ify, dream of more. And they’re willing to fight an entire war to get there.

A witch and a non-magical girl get stuck in an endless cycle of meet-cutes and breakups in this heart-stopping romantic young adult fantasy.

Two sisters must fight to the death to win the crown in the first installment of a gripping, action-packed duology set in an ancient North African-inspired fantasy world that subtly but powerfully challenges our notions of power, history, and identity.